It is known for labeling machines to be provided on the periphery of a rotor that can be driven to rotate about a vertical machine-axis with a plurality of container holders, each of which holds a container that is to be provided with a label or other form of decoration.
It is also known for the container holders to be configured with a rotary drive or rotary control so that, as the containers that are provided in the container holders move past a labeling or printing unit, they are oriented by controlled rotation about their container axis so as to assume a required orientation, for example relative to a container feature, and/or to rotate the containers about their container axes by a given angular amount as and/or after they pass the labeling or printing unit.
The controlled rotation of the individual container holders is brought about preferably by each container holder being provided with its own controllable rotary drive having a dedicated electrical actuator or servo motor, especially when these container holders are to be individually rotated. The large number of rotary drives alone involves a significant constructional effort.